1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food having split section layers composed of thin water film layers formed therein and a method of manufacturing the same. This water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food can be readily split even in a low temperature state immediately after it has been taken out from a refrigerator. Accordingly, the food is very useful as household table fats and oils, fats and oils for cooking purpose, or as raw fats and oils for commercial use.
2. Prior Art
Typical examples of water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food include butter, margarine and spread. The manners in which they are used are various. For household use, it is used as cooking material or as table fats and oils to be spread on bread or the like. For commercial consumption such as in the field of confectionery or baking, it is used as raw fats and oils to be kneaded into dough.
Butter is manufactured by a process comprising steps of aging cream at a temperature of +13.degree. C. for approximately 8 hours, churning this to form soybean-sized butter lumps, and kneading them together by working to achieve a uniform texture.
Margarine or spread is manufactured by a process comprising steps of hardening animal or vegetable fat or oil such as palm oil, safflower oil, bean oil, colza oil, coconut oil, lard or fish oil directly or through hydrogenation, adding emulsifier to prepare an oil-phase, mixing this oil-phase with a water-phase consisting of water, emulsifier, stabilizer or skimmed milk and flavoring ingredients such as spicery until emulsification is achieved, and quenching the mixture under kneading with use of suitable device such as pin-machine or botator. The water-in-oil type fats and oils food manufactured by each of the above-mentioned processes may be classified into hard type and soft type by the basis of the solid fat index (SFI) of the particular fats and oils. The water content of such food may be in a relatively wide range of approximately 15-50% by weight.
The water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food manufactured as has been described above is packaged in a specific manner depending upon its purpose of use. For example, butter or margarine of hard type for household use is packaged typically in a unit weight in order of 112.5 g, 225 g or 450 g. Butter or margarine of soft type also for household use is packed in a cup-shaped container typically in a unit weight in order of 250 g or 450 g. On the other hand, so-called commercial consumption water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food to be used as raw material in the field of confectionery or baking is packed in a corrugated cardboard box with interposition of suitable film typically in a unit weight of 20 kg or 30 kg. The water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food is usually maintained at a refrigeration temperature (approximately 5.degree. C.) during storage or transport. While the water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food is soft and fluid immediately after it has been manufactured, glyceride contained therein is solidified as this food is refrigerated and results in rapid increase of its hardness no matter whether it is of hard type or of soft type. Accordingly, the water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food which has just been taken out from a refrigerator presents the state of a block which is too hard to be easily split or partially cut off to be used. Particularly in the case of the hard type, it is a usual practice in many households to leave the food of this type taken out from the refrigerator at a room temperature for a period until it becomes sufficiently soft enough to be split easily. Also in the case of the commercial consumption water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food, it is a conventional measure to wait for appropriate rise in the temperature of the food before it is sliced by means of a slicer.
However, such practice of partially splitting the water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food to be used after it has been taken out from the refrigerator and left at a room temperature until it is soften is inconvenient in that the quality as well as the taste cannot avoid deterioration, since the food surface has been more or less molten even if trouble is taken to put the unused portion of the food back into the refrigerator. In the case of so-called commercial consumption water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food, considerably long time is required to raise the temperature of the food before slicing and the operation of slicing also requires much time and labor. This inevitably affects productivity.
In view of the problems as have been described above, it is a principal object of the invention to provide water-in-oil type emulsifying fats and oils food so improved that the food can be readily split even when it is taken out from a refrigerator immediately before use.